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Moses Malone: The Life of a Basketball Prophet
The biography of legend Moses Malone, the first modern-day player to jump from high school basketball to the pros, paving a path for future star players like Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett, and LeBron James to follow.
- GenresBasketballSports
304 pages, Hardcover
Published November 1, 2025
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22 people want to read
About the author
Paul Knepper
2 books2 followersPaul Knepper was a New York Knicks featured columnist for Bleacher Report. His first book was The Knicks of the Nineties: Ewing, Oakley, Starks, and the Brawlers That Almost Won It All, and his second book is Moses Malone: The Life of a Basketball Prophet. Knepper grew up in Jericho, New York, and now lives in Austin, Texas, with his wife and son. He's a graduate of the University of Michigan and Fordham University School of Law.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 29, 2025
Fairly or unfairly, the public perception of a superstar athlete will often be evaluated on his or her relationship with the media. Hall of Fame basketball player Moses Malone was a player who may not have had the popularity of others in his era like Magic Johnson or Michael Jordan, but that didn’t stop him from having a great basketball career and show his true side to teammates and others out of the spotlight. That trait of Malone’s, as well as his success on the court, is documented in this excellent biography by Paul Knepper.
Malone became famous at a young age when he became the first high school player to be drafted and signed by a professional team in 1974. After a brilliant high school career in Petersburg, Virginia, Malone was ready to play college ball at the University of Maryland, he instead signed with the Utah Stars of the American Basketball Association (ABA). The poverty he experienced due to being raised in a fairly large family led by a single mother certainly played a role in the decision. Knepper’s research and interviews help the reader learn about this period of Malone’s life.
The pages about Malone’s professional basketball career are just as good. The ABA and its teams were on shaky financial ground and the Stars eventually folded and Malone joined the Spirits of St. Louis. While he was a young and raw talent playing for these teams, he impressed coaches and veteran teammates with his work ethic and willingness to listen to coaches. This bode well for him after the ABA and NBA merged. Because the Spirits were not one of the 4 teams to enter the NBA, Malone was put in a dispersal draft, where he was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers and soon thereafter dealt to the Buffalo Braves. After some time in Buffalo, Malone was traded again, this time to the Houston Rockets.
It was in Houston where Malone was finally able to show the talent, skill and smarts on the court that made him a Hall of Fame player. He led the Rockets to the NBA Finals once and made several all star teams. However, after not receiving an offer he saw as fitting for what he did in Houston, he signed with the Philadelphia 76ers. That team was already loaded with stars like Julius Erving, Bobby Jones, and Maurice Cheeks. The 76ers, having lost twice in the Finals to the Lakers in the previous three seasons, finally won it all in 1983. Malone made a famous quote of “Fo, fo, fo” meaning the Sixers would win the three series needed to become champions in four game sweeps - he was only one game off.
During this time with the Sixers is when the reader, thanks to Knepper’s excellent writing, learns the complicated person Malone is. He is generous with his time to teammates and fans, but not always with the press. He can seem charming but infidelity and allegations of hitting his wife brings down that image. After his skills were declining, he struggled to find a career after basketball although he did not blow all his money away. All in all, this book is an excellent look at the complex life of one of the best basketball players of the 1980’s.
I wish to thank University of Nebraska Press for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are strictly my own.
https://sportsbookguy.blogspot.com/20...
Malone became famous at a young age when he became the first high school player to be drafted and signed by a professional team in 1974. After a brilliant high school career in Petersburg, Virginia, Malone was ready to play college ball at the University of Maryland, he instead signed with the Utah Stars of the American Basketball Association (ABA). The poverty he experienced due to being raised in a fairly large family led by a single mother certainly played a role in the decision. Knepper’s research and interviews help the reader learn about this period of Malone’s life.
The pages about Malone’s professional basketball career are just as good. The ABA and its teams were on shaky financial ground and the Stars eventually folded and Malone joined the Spirits of St. Louis. While he was a young and raw talent playing for these teams, he impressed coaches and veteran teammates with his work ethic and willingness to listen to coaches. This bode well for him after the ABA and NBA merged. Because the Spirits were not one of the 4 teams to enter the NBA, Malone was put in a dispersal draft, where he was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers and soon thereafter dealt to the Buffalo Braves. After some time in Buffalo, Malone was traded again, this time to the Houston Rockets.
It was in Houston where Malone was finally able to show the talent, skill and smarts on the court that made him a Hall of Fame player. He led the Rockets to the NBA Finals once and made several all star teams. However, after not receiving an offer he saw as fitting for what he did in Houston, he signed with the Philadelphia 76ers. That team was already loaded with stars like Julius Erving, Bobby Jones, and Maurice Cheeks. The 76ers, having lost twice in the Finals to the Lakers in the previous three seasons, finally won it all in 1983. Malone made a famous quote of “Fo, fo, fo” meaning the Sixers would win the three series needed to become champions in four game sweeps - he was only one game off.
During this time with the Sixers is when the reader, thanks to Knepper’s excellent writing, learns the complicated person Malone is. He is generous with his time to teammates and fans, but not always with the press. He can seem charming but infidelity and allegations of hitting his wife brings down that image. After his skills were declining, he struggled to find a career after basketball although he did not blow all his money away. All in all, this book is an excellent look at the complex life of one of the best basketball players of the 1980’s.
I wish to thank University of Nebraska Press for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are strictly my own.
https://sportsbookguy.blogspot.com/20...
October 14, 2025
Well-researched and engaging. Moses is one of the greats most often forgot, and I hope this book helps people remember him. He was a complicated character -- shy around strangers and the press, gentle and jovial around his teammates and friends. The book does not shy away from his marital transgressions, but it also doesn't let them overshadow what was overall a very impressive life. Ultimately, this is a story about hard work. I enjoyed it.
September 10, 2025
I got this from Netgalley, so I can read and review it before it’s published. Before I dive in, I was a huge basketball fan (mainly San Antonio Spurs, but also the league in general). So, when I saw this biography of Moses, I was all in and extremely intrigued. I knew a little about his life, but was looking forward to reading a lot more. Let me tell you, after I read a few chapters, I was already thinking this could very easily be the book of the year for me.
Moses was the first player to go from High School to a professional team, and that professional team was the Utah Stars in the ABA. He was recruited by the University of Maryland and did sign a letter to attend, but money talks, and Moses needed the financial stability so he could support his family. The overall college recruitment process was talked about, and a lot of them offered more than a scholarship to Moses.
Looking back at all the teams and coaches he played for, it’s very impressive…
After Utah, he went on to play for the Spirits of St. Louis in the ABA, the Buffalo Braves, the Houston Rockets (Rudy Tomjanovich was a teammate and he mentored and helped Hakeem Olajuwon while he playing for the University of Houston – he become a superstar in the NBA years later, the Philadelphia 76ers (his teammates were Dr. J., Bobby Jones, Maurice Cheeks, and Charles Barkley – just to name a few key ones), the Washington Bullets (7’7 Manute Bol and 5’3 Muggsy Bogues were teammates), the Atlanta Hawks (Dominique Wilkins and Doc Rivers were teammates), and he finished is storied career as a member of the 1994-1995 San Antonio Spurs (David Robinson and Dennis Rodman were teammates).
Some of his highlighted accomplishments include:
1983 NBA Champion
1983 NBA Finals MVP
3x NBA MVP
13x All-Star
A lot of game details were included throughout the book. His sense of humor was tongue-in-cheek and his media personality was boring – on purpose. He had a knack for the game itself and prided himself on being prepared and never taking anything for granted. If he took interest in you, you would be set for life inside the courts and also outside the courts.
Overall, I really enjoyed all the stories of Moses from his childhood to retirement to the NBA Hall of Fame where he was inducted in 2001.
Moses was the first player to go from High School to a professional team, and that professional team was the Utah Stars in the ABA. He was recruited by the University of Maryland and did sign a letter to attend, but money talks, and Moses needed the financial stability so he could support his family. The overall college recruitment process was talked about, and a lot of them offered more than a scholarship to Moses.
Looking back at all the teams and coaches he played for, it’s very impressive…
After Utah, he went on to play for the Spirits of St. Louis in the ABA, the Buffalo Braves, the Houston Rockets (Rudy Tomjanovich was a teammate and he mentored and helped Hakeem Olajuwon while he playing for the University of Houston – he become a superstar in the NBA years later, the Philadelphia 76ers (his teammates were Dr. J., Bobby Jones, Maurice Cheeks, and Charles Barkley – just to name a few key ones), the Washington Bullets (7’7 Manute Bol and 5’3 Muggsy Bogues were teammates), the Atlanta Hawks (Dominique Wilkins and Doc Rivers were teammates), and he finished is storied career as a member of the 1994-1995 San Antonio Spurs (David Robinson and Dennis Rodman were teammates).
Some of his highlighted accomplishments include:
1983 NBA Champion
1983 NBA Finals MVP
3x NBA MVP
13x All-Star
A lot of game details were included throughout the book. His sense of humor was tongue-in-cheek and his media personality was boring – on purpose. He had a knack for the game itself and prided himself on being prepared and never taking anything for granted. If he took interest in you, you would be set for life inside the courts and also outside the courts.
Overall, I really enjoyed all the stories of Moses from his childhood to retirement to the NBA Hall of Fame where he was inducted in 2001.
November 2, 2025
Moses Malone —The Life of a Basketball Prophet was released on this Dia de los Muertos. The publisher, the University of Nebraska Press, has appropriately revived the legacy of this legendary basketball player and individual whose story should be remembered in the history of basketball. The author Paul Knepper’s deep research and well-crafted storytelling paints the portrait of the man who deeply loved the game and whose deep desire to play it and be in community with its people and places led him to be a pioneer and Hall of Fame achiever in the sport. To quote the author’s last sentence in his Introduction, “For a five-year period when icons named Kareem, Dr. J, Magic, and Bird graced the hardwood, Moses Malone was the greatest basketball player in the world.” Paul Knepper has captured and capsulized the spirit of Moses Malone in this post-mortem biography. Kudos to him and the University of Nebraska for this contribution to securing his legacy.
December 16, 2025
Paul is a wonderful presence on X and this long awaited book was excellent. Exactly what you want in a sports bio, a perfect mix of knowing the man as well as the athlete.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews